Britain's brightest independent magic magazine

Issue 21 - July 08

Review

Working With Genius

David Hemingway
Available from: David Hemingway, 270 Gregson Lane , Preston PR5 0DP or www.magicbooksbypost.co.uk
Price: £25.00  

This year I have been fortunate enough to be asked to review two of the best books released this year by top knowledgeable magicians. The first was Geoffrey Durham's Professional Secrets (issue 19 March 2008 ) and the second is this new publication by David Hemingway. David has been involved in magic for 50 years and in that time has worked with many of the world's top performers (the 'Genius' referred to in the book's title) both in an advisory capacity and also as a designer and producer of illusions, and this book harvests and then places before the reader the experiences and knowledge gleaned from these contacts.  

The book is spiral bound and runs to 166 large size pages. It is divided into four sections. Section 1 is unusual in that it is essentially a transcript of the Gingerbread Lecture talks that David gave whilst doing a lecture tour of over 40 magic clubs in the UK . This transcript has not been re-written or formatted to make it more prose like to read, it is what it is, a faithful record of what David said and how he said it at the time. Different parts are lifted from different lecture occasions and the whole section is full of anecdotes and stories relating to his associations with many top performers such as Tommy Cooper, Ken Brooke and John Calvert over his long career. Although the format is a little unstructured due to the nature of the way it has been transcribed (a number of comments or anecdotes are repeated verbatim in other parts of the book, for instance), it is nevertheless totally fascinating, and hidden in the text are many great gags and pieces of sage advice which I found utterly absorbing. Anyone who wants to understand what it takes to be a top pro would do well to read and then re-read this as there is much to learn from here.  

Section 2 is entitled A Short Perception Of British Magic and Magicians. Here we are treated to about 40 pages of sermons about all things magical - and it's just great! David has a reputation for stating things as he sees that they are with no regard for the niceties of preserving peoples' egos, and this section of the book pulls together and explains many of the comments and indeed criticisms that he has made of others and that others have made about him. He lucidly explains what is wrong with the way magic acts and events are reported, and explains what could and should be done in order to make our magic world a better, more professionally run place.  

I really loved this part of the book and found myself agreeing with nearly everything that David said. If there were more people like David prepared to give knowledgeable and constructive criticism and there were more people prepared to understand and intelligently accept that criticism, the magic world would move on more purposefully instead of being as it often is, locked in a self congratulatory mist of unthinking delusion that all is fine. David is not, as some would have him portrayed, someone who likes to criticise without due cause, and he gives praise in abundance where it is justified - but don't take my word for it, read this part of the book carefully and you will understand for yourself.  

Sections 3 leads us on to the tricks. These are referred to as Signature Tricks - in other words these are top line, reputation making stand up or stage effects which come directly from David's repertoire. Thought Loops is a simple visual transposition of two different coloured ribbon loops secured over a lady spectator's arm; Rigid Rope provides a handling and some patter lines for the classic gag prop; Anti-Gravity Glasses gives the working of the no-fake version of the trick using a simple wooden tray and no cover; The Popularity Contest is Dick Williams wonderful bit of business with two young helpers and The Clapometer is David's independently devised slight variation on this - both are terrific; Comedy Tear is a comedy presentation for the torn and restored tissue paper; the Ultimate Goes-Anywhere Act is the definitive version of David's 20 minute comedy piece using a deck of cards and some great audience participation and gags; the Gingerbread Knot gives details of David's ultimate 'hands off' version of the knotted silk through wrist effect including extensive notes on the knot tie concept used; Roadsign is David's commercial handling and presentation for the Chinese Compass; The Rose is a delightful production of a real rose from a knot tied in a large silk scarf; John Calvert's Magazine Tear is basically Ken Brooke's handling with additional notes by David. All the items are extremely thoroughly explained with excellent line drawings by Sandra Kort and all bear the hallmarks of methods designed for the pro entertainer i.e. bullet proof.  

Section 4 is a little Bonus which closes the book with a hilarious spoof card effect called The Nadir Cards which was originally published in Abra, an essay on dealing with stage fright and a summing up by David in Afterword.  

I said at the beginning that I have been lucky to read two of the best books published this year, and there are similarities and also differences between the two. Both are written by knowledgeable pros, both contain strong opinions based on a lifetime of experience. I do wish that David had produced his book to a higher standard - the material would have justified a hard backed format with quality paper stock such as is to be found with Geoffrey Durham's book - as I don't feel that wire bound gives the publication the importance it deserves. However, the magic described is far more accessible than that described in Professional Secrets, using as it does more readily available props. What they both have in common, however, is that they should both be on your bookshelf - after you have read them from cover to cover! ML  

What’s Hot: straight talking advice and super practical magic
What’s Not: quality of the book paper and binding could have been improved
Star Rating: ****  

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